Tag: Message to Bears

Our friends over at Message to Bears have sent word about their attempt to raise money for their new album – Folding Leaves – via IndieGoGo, and so we thought we’d pass it along to you. The band is hoping to raise about $4,000 for their new album (on Dead Pilot Records), and seems to be about halfway there. We’ve written before about Message to Bears, and would be very happy to see the band come through with another record. So, if you’re curious, check out that IndieGoGo page, or watch the pitch below before deciding!

I’ve written about the excellent music of Message to Bears before, and now I’ve got some good news for those of you who missed out on their debut LP: Departures. Dan from Message to Bears has just written to let me know that the original is being re-released on vinyl from Dead Pilot Records. It’s a limited pressing of an excellent record, and I definitely encourage you to check it out! You can hear some of Message to Bears’ music by visiting Bandcamp, or heading on over to MySpace. Or, you know, by following the link below… Whatever you choose, I definitely encourage you to consider picking up the vinyl reissue!

Sometimes, we need a break. As someone who is nearing the end/seventeenth fresh start of his Ph.D. thesis, this statement applies to me most of the time. In moments like this, I like to turn to bands like The Album Leaf, Sigur Rós, and similar masters of ambiance. But every now and again, I need something new to help me take the edge off. Enter: Message to Bears.

Message to Bears is actually Jerome Alexander, a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter from the U.K. Those instruments, myspace tells us, are “acoustic guitars, pianos, glockenspiels, samples, drums, loop pedal, melodica, toy piano, harmonium, [and] voice.” The result is a collection of beautiful, gentle acoustic songs that curl around you like a misty, English twilight (as I am currently experiencing one, I stand by this claim as 100% true). The melodies evoke a sense of wistful nostalgia, and remind me of staring into a deep, night sky.

Taken from the debut album Departures (Out on Dead Pilot Records and iTunes), “At the Top of this Hill” and “Running through Woodland” evoke dramatic, melancholic landscapes. The former, through children’s voices, recalls long-gone days of youthful innocence, and the latter conjures a forest crowned by grey clouds. Absolutely lovely, and both very effective in their own way.

I’ve also included “Unfold” from EP 1. To me, tracks likes this make me feel that I’ve stumbled into someone’s diary. Even wordless, they are clearly attempts to capture very particular moods and impressions. Just the sort of thing to help you relax by replacing your troubled thoughts with other, softer ones. Come on in and have a listen, won’t you?